What are your plans for health insurance if you retire to a country other than your home country?
When I was leaving my last overseas position, I paid for the standard COBRA policy from my current provider to cover me until I either started a job in the US to get coverage or retired and needed to purchase a policy.
What I noticed in the price is that if I remained overseas during the transition, my policy cost would be manageable. But the policy cost rose dramatically when I told the insurance provider I would be back in the US during the coverage period.
I am again researching health insurance. I am now looking to relocate to a country outside the US. With Mexico as one of my possible long-term destinations, I appreciate the information provided on the Two Expats Mexico YouTube channel. You can find many articles and YouTube videos to help you put a plan of action together.
So what have I learned so far? Yes, purchasing health insurance is less expensive if one lives overseas. Multiple factors come into play regarding what you might want for your deductible, US healthcare access, and other factors.
I started my search with the Clements Worldwide insurance brokerage company that my international accountant shared with me. They specialize in helping expatriates. The Clements page on international health insurance offers extensive information to help you unpack how to build a policy.
I spoke with a broker, who pointed out that the Cigna insurance company provides health insurance policies for Americans living overseas. The broker sent me the link to the Cigna Global Health Options application page to get a quote on a policy. He explained that one could make choices for coverage and cost options. A teaching couple I met, who were taking a year off in Asia, also told me they have their health insurance policy with Cigna.
I am not advocating that anyone use Clements or Cigna. Both companies are coming to me from my network. As always, research to find resources that best meet your needs.
